Between 2008 and 2011, the Department will have provided £3.5 million annually to the regional development agencies for the support of the tourism industry.
In the same period, the DCMS will have provided over £130 million to VisitBritain and VisitEngland to market Britain to overseas visitors, and England to domestic visitors respectively.
DCMS has also made £45 million (£15 million per annum over three years) available through the Sea Change programme, which aims to help the regeneration of seaside resorts in England through cultural and heritage projects. In the first year of the programme (2008-09), £4,160,655 was allocated to the south west as set out in the following table:
Seaside town/resort Grant allocated (£) Torbay 2,247,532 Boscombe 455,000 Teignmouth 376,676 Weston-Super-Mare 951,447 Westward Ho! 1100,000 Ilfracombe 230,000 1 Development grant 2 Feasibility grant